Starlight
by BeautifulDreams42
Summary: "There were three things Betty Cooper was sure of. One, Jughead Jones was a vampire. Two, there was a part of him that thirsted for her blood. And lastly, she was deeply, madly, and completely in love with him." -Twilight Inspired Riverdale
1. Chapter 1: A Long Way from Home

Chapter One: A Long Way From Home

Elizabeth Cooper shuffled her way towards the mass of people at the airport. Her long, blonde hair was flowing freely, a rare thing for her. Her blue eyes had none of their usual light as she glanced down at her ticket. She would be out of Phoenix and in the town she never felt at home in.

Riverdale.

Her parents' hometown. It was where they had met and fallen in love, but now all it brought were sad memories to all of them. Up until now, she had lived with her father Hal in Phoenix with her sister Polly. But she was long gone, married and living in San Francisco. Her father had remarried a sprightly, nomadic woman named Gwen who wanted to move to Florida.

"Betty."

The young blonde was pulled away from her thoughts to see her father. He had the same blue eyes as her, the same softness to their face, but his hair was a dark, rustic-looking brown. His face was set in a deep frown.

"You don't have to go, honey," Hal said.

"I want to," Betty sighed, combing her fingers through her hair. "It'll be good to spend some time with mom. I miss her."

Hal nodded and grabbed Betty's arm and pulled her in for a hug, "I'll miss you, sweetie."

"I'll miss you, too, Dad," She said back, holding in the tears that were threatening to spill.

"Tell your mom I said hi."

"I will," Betty told him. "Goodbye, dad."

It had been a very long flight and Betty's face dropped down with exhaustion. Upon arriving in Port Angeles, Washington, her mother Alice was waiting for her. Alice was leaning on the side of her car, holding up an umbrella that was shielding her from the downpour. Her tousled blonde hair was the exact same shade as Betty's. There was a great deal of resemblance between both women.

Alice hugged her daughter, before ushering her into the car to begin their journey to Riverdale. It was a silent ride as neither women were exactly verbose. The older woman opted to turn on the radio as Betty took in her scenery.

There was green everywhere. It looked like there was an infestation of green. Vibrant foliage sprawled all over the mossy earth, trees sprung up from every inch, and the grayness of the clouds only highlighted the vividity of the green. It was beautiful, in a way Betty could appreciate. Although, she could make do without the pouring rain. She wasn't particularly fond of cold weather.

"I bought you a car!" Alice squealed excitedly as she dashed through a sign that said 'Welcome to Riverdale! The town with pep!'

"Oh," Betty said not expecting her mother to start a conversation. "You shouldn't have, mom."

"I wanted to," Alice insisted, her blue eyes twinkling. "You'll love it. Archie spent all last week fixing it up for you. You remember Archie Andrews right?"

Archie Andrews was the small red-headed boy who lived right next door to her when she still lived in Riverdale. They used to make mud pies and go swimming in Sweetwater River when they were little.

Betty nodded in response and prompted Alice to continue.

"It's a good car. It's still running-I swear."

Betty could only smile at her mom as they finally pulled up into a familiar driveway. An orange truck was perched in front of a charmingly white, two-story house. It looked exactly the same as the last time Betty had visited. The two blondes rushed out of the car and into the house, only managing to get slightly wet from the rain.

Everything was the same way Betty remembered, including her room. The dull pink curtains, the flowery duvet, the small desk in the corner, and her long, standing mirror. She spent most of her night organizing her clothes into her closet and adding decor she had brought from home. After a while, she finally fell asleep.

Betty woke up the next morning and stumbled blindly into the bathroom. It was still dark out, an unfortunate side effect of living under a near-constant cloud cover. She brushed her blonde hair into a tight, neat ponytail and slithered into a powder blue peacoat.

Thankfully, Riverdale High School wasn't too far from her house. She had almost made it through the whole day without embarrassing herself. It wasn't until she tripped on her loose shoelace and brought a girl down with her.

"I am so sorry!" Betty spluttered helping the petite girl up.

She was pretty in a sophisticated way. She had thick ebony hair, beautifully arched eyebrows, and glowing golden skin. Her dark eyes watched Betty apprehensively before settling on a bright smile.

"Don't worry about it, New Girl," The girl struck out her perfectly manicured hand. "I'm Veronica Lodge fashion extraordinaire and resident prima donna. You must be Elizabeth Cooper."

Betty laughed, not knowing how else to respond, and took her hand, "Call me Betty."

"Well, Betty, I believe we have lunch to attend," Veronica caught Betty by surprise and looped her arm around the blonde's and led her to the cafeteria. "So, how's your first day so far? Have you fallen tragically enough with a mysterious local yet?"

"No, not yet," Betty shook her head. They were nearing a table full of teenagers who were all waving at Veronica. "Is that a common thing here?"

Veronica shrugged, "Riverdale tends to be the drama hub of the Olympic Peninsula. It really shouldn't be pegged as a town with pep. More like a town of mystery and hot, steamy drama."

"Veronica, hey, who's this?"

Betty glanced up to see the owner of the voice. He was a handsome, tall boy with stylish brown hair and green eyes.

"Betty this is the adoringly annoying Nick St. Clair," Veronica gestured toward the boy. "Saint Nick, this is Betty Cooper."

Betty was introduced to the rest of the group. Josie McCoy (a young singer with an ambitious streak), Ethel Muggs (she was incredibly sweet albeit painfully shy), and Kevin Keller (the charismatic son of the town's sheriff).

"Damn, God, really went overboard when he made him," Kevin grinned as a familiar gangly redhead walked into the cafeteria.

Archie Andrews was flanked by a gang of boys all playfully bantering with each other. As he passed, he smiled at Betty in acknowledgment.

"Archie Andrews and his stupid pack of dogs," Veronica sneered, her berry-colored lips turning into a frown. "Even poor, mousy Dilton Doiley is following him like a lost puppy!"

"You're just mad he laughed when Reggie spilled spaghetti all over your new dress," Nick pointed out.

"I can't decide who's hotter Joaquin or Moose," Kevin sighed dreamily. "Oh, I think they definitely would be the hottest guys in school if Jughead didn't go here."

Betty snorted loudly at the mention of the name, "What kind of a name is Jughead?"

"The name of a stupid boy who isn't worth our time," Veronica sniffed.

"The guy who rejected her," Nick interrupted, a lazy smirk graced his face.

"Speaking of Jughead," Kevin said perking up. "Here come the Jones clan."

A group of dazzling beautiful students entered the cafeteria at that precise moment. In the lead was a statuesque girl with long, wavy red hair. She was stunning and resembled a high fashion supermodel than a modern teenager. Next to her was a petite girl with purple curls and a charming smile. She was light on her feet, in a way a professional ballerina would be.

Not far behind them were two dark-haired boys both wearing leather jackets. They towered over the girls, one of them was tall enough to even reach the ceiling. They were both muscular like bodybuilders and devilishly handsome.

"The redhead is Cheryl Blossom, the purple-haired girl is Toni Topaz," Kevin told Betty. "The really giant one is Sweet Pea-yeah, it's a nickname or something-the other is Fangs Fogarty. Also, a nickname I think."

A gangly boy with raven-black hair and a pale face trailed behind them. While all the others looked, at best, slightly joyful, he was completely stoic. His shoulders were hunched and his face twisted up in what looked like turmoil as if he was fighting a war in his head.

"Is that one Jughead Jones, then?" Betty asked. He was the only one left so it had to be.

"Unfortunately, yes," Veronica stated sourly.

As if he could hear his name being said, Jughead Jones' head snapped up. His piercing charcoal eyes met Betty's and her whole being was flooded with warmth.

He was beautiful. So beautiful in a tragic way that made angels weep. He looked at Betty quizzically, his eyes focused solely on her. He looked momentarily shocked, before composing his expression into a stoic one again and following the others' lead.

Betty's body tingled all over. One thing she knew for sure was that Jughead Jones intrigued her and she didn't know whether that was good or bad.


	2. Chapter 2: Unusual Circumstances

Chapter Two: Unusual Circumstances

Betty had walked all the way to Biology with Ethel Muggs and Nick St. Clair. Ethel remained quiet throughout the whole way there, but Nick talked Betty's ear off. He was telling her about the small sports shop his parents owned. Betty just nodded politely and felt relieved once they entered the classroom and each went to their assigned seats.

Betty was surprised to see that the only seat available was next to Jughead Jones. She scrutinized him as she crept closer towards the black-top table. She could see the dark tendrils of hair peeking out from under his crown-like beanie. His jacket sleeves were pushed back exposing pale, taut skin. He looked utterly washed out under the fluorescent lighting.

As she took her seat next to him, his whole face morphed into a twisted, pained look and his back stiffened. He sniffed the air once, before covering his nose with his free hand, his other hand gripped his pencil so fiercely Betty feared it'd snap in half.

Betty grabbed a lock of blonde hair and sniffed curiously. It smelled like strawberries, the same scent as her shampoo. She jutted her jaw out suddenly feeling offended by Jughead Jones' rigid behavior. He cast one long glare at her before fixing his stare forward.

He remained silent the whole period. Never glancing at Betty again. He acted as if she wasn't there. As soon as the bell rung, he bolted out the door leaving Betty shocked and dazed by his behavior.

The rest of the day went on uneventful. Jughead Jones stopped showing up to school after that day and Betty felt incredibly guilty as if she had caused his absence. Of course, she knew she had done nothing wrong.

By Monday, he was back. Betty had been shocked to see the raven-haired boy sitting in his seat casually sketching on a notepad. He glanced up at her and flashed her a slightly friendly smile that looked odd on his face. She stumbled into her seat, too startled to smile back.

"Hello," His voice was tender and musical. "I don't think I formally introduced myself. I'm Jughead Jones, you must be Betty Cooper."

"How do you know my name?" She felt her whole face turned red as he looked at her in bewilderment.

"Sorry, I was under the impression that was your name."

"No, it is," She told him. "It's just everyone seems to call me Elizabeth, which I'm sure it's my mom's fault. You're the only one to have called me Betty right off the bat."

"Oh," Jughead nodded understandingly.

"Jughead? Is that really your name?"

He laughed softly and shook his head.

"No, of course not," Jughead smiled. "It's a nickname my adoptive brothers' Sweet Pea and Fangs came up with-also nicknames."

"What's your name then," Betty asked, cocking her head to the side curiously.

"I'm not about to expose myself to drastic levels of embarrassment," Jughead scoffed

"I'm sure it's not that bad," Betty pressed.

"Oh, it's ghastly,"Jughead found himself disclosing the information anyway. "It's Forsythe."

"That's...interesting."

"I warned you about it being bad."

The rest of the class was spent them talking whilst scribbling done on their worksheets. Betty found herself seeing Jughead Jones in a new light. She learned that his parents had died when he was younger and Francis Peterson Jones (also known as FP or Dr. Jones) had adopted him and a couple of other troubled teens. The way he spoke about his family with so much conviction, sparked a surge of interest in Betty. She wanted to meet them all.

"I suppose, I'll see you around, Betty Cooper," He told her gathering his possessions as the bell rung.

Betty flashed him a smile, which he returned. Nick St. Clair watched the exchanged with curious eyes, but didn't say anything.

The next day Betty found herself groaning at the sight outside her bedroom window. There was a thick layer of snow covering every inch of her front yard. There was white dusting that fell beautifully on the trees and Betty felt like she was stuck in Winter Wonderland, something that she wasn't used to seeing being from Phoenix.

"Sweetie," Alice's crept closer as she stumbled into Betty's room, bag half open as she stuffed a bunch of folders into it. "Remember our neighbor Fred, right? He was wondering if you can give his son, Archie a ride. You guys hang out at school, don't you? So it shouldn't be awkward."

"We see each other around."

Betty didn't want to tell her mom that Archie Andrews barely spoke to her. Especially not when Veronica Lodge or Nick St. Clair hovered around, which considering they had become Betty's closest friends, he rarely ever looked her way.

"Okay, great! Listen, I have to get to work," Alice said closing her bag and giving Betty a quick kiss on the cheek. "Be careful on the road. I had Fred but snow chains on your truck this morning."

Betty drummed her fingers on the steering wheel, as she waited for Archie to show up. She scooted closer to the heater, letting the soft billows of air warm her up. Finally, Archie Andrews shuffled his way out the door and made his way towards her truck. In his haste, he slipped and fell onto the snowy floor. His bright ruby hair had a stark contrast against the white floor.

"You're worse than I am," She blurted out as he snuck onto the cab, shaking the dusting of snow from his hair. "That was some fall there, Andrews."

He glared playfully at her, "No one is clumsier than you, Betty Cooper. Remember when you tripped on a rock at Sweetwater River and I had to go fish you out of the water."

"I did not trip, you pushed me."

"That's not how I remember the story."

The conversation on the way to school, seemed to flow easily between them. Betty felt comfortable with Archie. He was nothing like the cold boy he acted at school.

"We should do this again sometime," Archie said truthfully, as Betty parked the car.

"As long as you don't push me down Sweetwater River again," Betty smiled, jumping out of the car. Her eyes catching sight of still figure a few cars away, she found herself waving at the figure.

Archie rolled his eyes at her. He glanced down the parking lot to see who was distracting her. His whole face morphed and he regarded her sourly.

"You're friends with Jughead Jones?" He hissed, face matching the brilliant scarlet of his hair.

"Well, I wouldn't say friends-"

"Some company you keep," Archie muttered turning away from her.

Eyes blazing, Betty grabbed Archie by the arm and pulled him back, "What's that supposed to mean?"

He looked momentarily shocked at her anger, but found his own anger very quickly, "I mean, first, Veronica Lodge and Nick St. Clair, now Jughead Jones. Wow, do you know how to pick 'em. You have the worst judge of character."

"I must, if I thought you were actually nice," Betty snapped in defense of her friends.

Archie looked at her hotly before turning on his heel, "Whatever. Thanks for the ride."

Betty kicked the back of the tuck angrily. She hadn't meant to get so worked up, it wasn't the kind of person she was. She just felt so horrible when Archie talked so badly about her friends. They had been nothing but welcoming to her. Granted, Jughead Jones was questionable. They weren't exactly friends, a kind welcoming wasn't something he got from her. Betty wasn't sure what her if Jughead Jones were, if not nothing but civil classmates, but their last conversation had Betty wanting to be more. She for some unfathomable reason felt that her and Jughead clicked, and friendship was something she definitely wanted.

Deep in her thoughts, Betty wasn't aware of the chaos happening around her until it was too late. With startled eyes, she glanced up just in time to see a huge van spinning out of control on the icy floor and right towards her. Betty closed her eyes waiting for the impact.

She felt her body hit the cold pavement. There was a distinct _crunch_ and the sound of metal bending and glass falling onto the floor. The cold body against her hovered protectively over her, shielding her from any debris.

"Betty? Are you okay?"

Betty's eyes flew open and she found herself staring disoriented at a pair of clear, golden eyes.

"Jughead?" She felt slightly dizzy, but she could still see the visible dent where Jughead's hand lay against the van.

"You're bleeding," He frowned.

"From the pavement," Betty told him, dazed, as she tried to get up. "W-where did you come from?"

"What do you mean?" He asked, his eyes narrowing as he inspected her head.

"You were nowhere near me."

"I was right next to you, Betty," His eyes were staring her down, challenging her to say something otherwise.

They were both distracted by the frantic sobbing of Midge Klump from the inside of the van. With one arm, Jughead pulled Betty up, enough for her to see the flood of students rushing to the scene. In all the ensuing chaos, she was whisked away from Jughead's grip and onto the ambulance and rushed to the hospital.

There she waited, perched in the emergency room waiting for the doctor to talk to her about her X-rays.

"You look miserable."

Jughead Jones sauntered towards her. His expression was indiscernible as regarded her form.

"They won't let me go because someone said I had a concussion," Betty grumbled. "It was just a scratch from the pavement, no serious injury."

Jughead shrugged, "If you say so, but I seriously do think you hit your head."

"Why? You think I'm completely delusional in thinking you were nowhere near me. That I saw you stop the van."

Jughead's jaw clenched, "Can't you just thank me for pushing you away and drop it?"

"Thank you."

"You're not going to let this go, are you?" He groaned.

"Absolutely not."

"Am I interrupting something?"

Betty looked up and felt absolutely floored. There leaning against the wall was a tall man, with dark silky hair. He smiled gleefully at Jughead, his bright teeth looked like a Dentist's dream. He looked like every handsome movie star Betty had ever seen all molded into one beautiful man.

"Miss Cooper," He slipped past Jughead and towards her. "I'm Dr. Jones. How are you feeling?"

Betty felt like her tongue swelled up, but manage to choke out, "I-I'm fine."

"X-rays came back great," He told her, prodding her head gently with his cool fingers. "Nothing serious. Does this hurt?"

"No."

He nodded and jotted down things on his clipboard, "Well, I'm clearing you to go. If there's any dull pain, Tylenol will be fine, but anything intense head straight back here."

"Thank you," Betty smiled feebly at Dr. Jones.

Dr. Jones flashed her a dazzling grin, "Have a safe trip, Miss Cooper. Your mother is waiting for you in the waiting room. I'll have a nurse escort you."

Betty could feel Jughead Jones' piercing stare as she walked away from the room and towards her waiting mom.

* * *

 **A/N: Thank you to everyone reading this story, to those of you that have favorited or followed it. A special thanks to Luxathequeen and adj1995 for reviewing. I hope you guys are enjoying this story as much as I'm enjoying writing it. There are going to be some differences from Twilight, but the premise is pretty much the same.**


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